Wednesday, June 19, 2013

INTERVIEW: Savage Sister

1) Thanks to television in my youth ("Wonder Years") and teens ("Boy Meets World"), I am aware of the brothers Savage, but who is the Savage sister?

1. I used to watch Wonder Years and Boy Meets World when I was young, too. Lots of Savage brothers going on in both shows, but only one Mr. Feeny! Savage Sister is actually an indirect reference to a film by Ingmar Bergman called "The Silence". The movie is about two sisters stuck in a hotel room, forced to dig up their resentful relationship between each other. The elder sister, who is struck by illness, is morally proud and critical of her younger sister. The younger sister is restless and sexual, and feels burdened by having to take care of her elder sister. I love the ambiguity and self-reproach of the film. It never takes a side for either sister. I have a strong intrigue for women, they genuinely fascinate me. So, I think that is why the name felt correct. "Savage" as an implication of unpredictability (both good and bad) and "Sister" as more of a collective indication of women rather than an indication of family ties. It's funny because the name took on this meaning for me only a while after I thought of it, instead of the other way around.

2) If you had to pick one band name to choose other than your own, but then the band name you chose would make you a cover band for that band, which name would you choose and why between: He's My Brother, She's My Savage Sister (you'd be covering He's My Brother, She's My Sister) / Twisted Savage Sister (Twisted Sister, like Dee Snider) / Savage Sister Hazel (Sister Hazel was a real band, I swear!) or The Pointer Savage Sisters?

2. You know, it's funny you ask that because some of my former band members made fun of me for the name, saying it was too close to Twisted Sister or Savage Garden. I didn't even think about Sister Hazel! It's hard to choose from such great options, but I think a Pointer Savage Sisters cover band would be amazing, simply to cover "I'm So Excited" in a dream pop/shoegaze way.

3) Other than being really cold and having good pizza, what is Chicago like?

3. Hahaha, cold and pizza, that's all the great windy city has to offer! Seriously though, Chicago is just such a unique city, especially in the context of America. It's not quite as overwhelming as New York and it's not quite as laid back as Los Angeles. It strikes a nice balance. There are so many people here who are genuinely into the arts and that's such a healthy thing. As such, while the music scene doesn't necessarily swell and boil over with amazing talent, it still consistently thrives. A lot of great ambient, dream pop and shoegaze bands to be found here. Hell, Kranky Records is based out of Chicago, so that should tell you something. One of the best aspects of Chicago to me, personally, is the record store culture. People here love them some records! You always hear about record stores closing, but Reckless Records here in Chicago just keeps expanding! As they should, it's a great place to get your music fix.

4) Do you find that more and more bands have female vocals in the umbrella known as shoegaze?

4. I was thinking about that the other day, actually. Women have taken a delightful front seat in regards to most dreamy music, including shoegaze. I mean, I think it's great. The more lady energy the better. For me, it was never in doubt that I would have a female singer. I may have written and produced all the music on the debut album, but the female vocals are essentially the most important part. They express the wistful romance and intimate fantasy that I was going for. It's not even as much about the lyrics as the feeling in how she chooses to sing the words. I think Chloe does a fantastic job of that.

5) Your debut full length album, self-titled, is out June 18th. Will that have a physical release? I'm crossing my fingers for vinyl full length, plus the option of a double vinyl where the second record contains your EPs *or* even better would be a vinyl of the new full length then your other EPs included as a special bonus cassette. (I love cassettes and records, but CDs are okay)

5. I would love to do a physical release, but I feel like I need to test the waters a bit and see what the demand is like. If enough people want a vinyl or cassette of the debut, I can absolutely work on getting something like that out there. As most people know, it's sort of an investment to do runs of vinyl and tape, so I want to make sure the audience is there to want them in the first place. Wow, you thought this double vinyl thing through! I could include the EP in something like that. I'm also working on putting together a b-sides collection, which will come out some time later as we piece it all together. For now bandcamp will be the main source to download your copy of the album.

6) Your music on Band Camp is free to stream, but costs money to download. This is exactly how I feel that music should be presented: because then people have the option to sample it and if they like it, they will give you their monies. Is this also your intention?

6. Yeah, I agree with you. You can always stream the music for free if you really don't want to pay for it, but for those who are particularly struck by the music, they will pay that little amount to have the song forever. It seems weird, but paying for music kind of legitimizes it more in the mind of the listener. They made an effort and gave of themselves to obtain these songs, so they will appreciate the music more, I feel. Bandcamp is a fair platform and that's why I'm so in love with using it.

7) Final thoughts, concerns, forgotten television shows, etc...??

7. As far as forgotten TV shows...Garth Marenghi's Darkplace! It's a satire of '80s supernatural hospital dramas! Just want to sincerely thank everyone for the support so far. I'm really excited to see where the band goes from here. Also, I'd like to spotlight two groups from my hometown (St. Louis, MO): Golden Curls is a duo that makes very dreamy, glittery electro pop, it's great stuff. Jake Leech makes ambient soundscapes. He recently released an album on Already Dead Tapes.